Chapter 6
Claire stared at Michael.
Rain poured between them.
Nobody moved.
Victor held Lily against his chest.
Michael kept the gun raised.
Daniel’s eyes moved from one man to the other.
“Is that true?”
Michael said nothing.
Claire’s voice broke.
“Michael?”
“I didn’t know what he would do.”
Victor laughed.
“There it is.”
Claire stepped backward.
“You told him where I was?”
Michael looked desperate.
“Claire, listen.”
“Did you?”
“Yes.”
The word landed harder than the gunshot.
Claire’s face went empty.
Daniel felt sick.
Michael continued quickly.
“My father said Victor would bring you somewhere safe.”
Claire almost laughed.
“Safe?”
“I thought Dad wanted to stop you from going to police.”
“So you handed me to him?”
“I was terrified!”
“You were always terrified!”
Victor pushed Lily toward the cabin door.
“Beautiful reunion. Now the drive.”
Daniel immediately focused.
“You let Lily walk to me.”
Victor shook his head.
“Not until I have it.”
Michael said, “You’ll never get it.”
Victor looked at him.
“You’re not going to shoot with the child here.”
Michael’s hand trembled.
Victor knew him too well.
Daniel crouched slowly.
He picked up the flash drive.
“Victor.”
“Yes?”
“You want money.”
“I want what Charles promised me.”
“How much?”
Victor smiled.
“Half.”
“Of four hundred million?”
“More now.”
Daniel glanced at Vanessa.
“Is he telling the truth?”
She nodded.
“Your father moved assets through offshore trusts.”
“How do you know?”
Vanessa looked ashamed.
“I helped him.”
Daniel’s jaw tightened.
“Of course you did.”
Victor said, “Enough.”
Daniel raised the drive.
“If you kill Lily, I break this.”
Victor’s face hardened.
“You don’t know whether there are backups.”
“Neither do you.”
Daniel held the drive between both hands.
“One move, and it snaps.”
Victor watched him.
Daniel took a step.
“Send Lily to Vanessa.”
“No.”
“I give you the drive when she reaches Vanessa.”
Victor thought.
Lily cried silently.
Daniel kept his voice calm.
“You’ve waited seven years. Don’t lose everything because you’re impatient.”
Victor’s eyes narrowed.
Then he released Lily.
“Walk.”
Lily ran.
“Daddy!”
Victor shouted.
“Not him! Vanessa!”
Lily veered toward Vanessa.
Vanessa dropped to her knees.
Lily crashed into her arms.
Daniel’s whole body wanted to move toward them.
He forced himself not to.
Victor extended his hand.
“Drive.”
Daniel tossed it.
Victor caught it.
Michael immediately moved his gun.
Victor raised his.
Daniel shouted, “NO!”
A second person appeared behind the cabin.
Another armed man.
Then another.
Michael’s face fell.
Victor smiled.
“You came with one gun.”
Three more men stepped from the shadows.
“Drop it.”
Michael slowly lowered his weapon.
Daniel’s mind raced.
At least Lily was no longer in Victor’s arms.
That was something.
Victor pointed toward the cabin.
“Everyone inside.”
They moved.
Vanessa held Lily tightly.
Claire refused to look at Michael.
Inside, the cabin looked almost unchanged from old family photographs.
Stone fireplace.
Wooden table.
Leather chairs.
But now laptops and equipment covered one side of the room.
Victor inserted the drive.
Password prompt.
He looked at Claire.
“Password.”
“Release Lily.”
Victor laughed.
“You already had your trade.”
“You have the drive.”
“And you have the girl.”
“She’s staying with us.”
Victor raised his gun.
Daniel stepped forward.
“Stop using her.”
“Then give me the password.”
Claire remained silent.
Victor walked toward Michael.
“Maybe he knows.”
Michael looked at him with hatred.
“Go to hell.”
Victor hit him across the face with the gun.
Michael dropped.
Claire flinched despite herself.
Victor struck him again.
Daniel lunged forward.
One of the guards grabbed him.
“STOP!”
Victor looked at Claire.
“Password.”
Claire’s hands shook.
“Ridgeway.”
Victor typed it.
Wrong.
He looked at her.
Claire said, “Eleanor.”
Wrong.
Victor’s smile disappeared.
“You’re testing me.”
Claire met his eyes.
“Maybe I forgot.”
Victor grabbed Michael’s injured hand and slammed it against the table.
Michael screamed.
Claire looked away.
“PASSWORD!”
Daniel shouted, “Claire, give it to him.”
She looked at Daniel.
“We can’t.”
“He will kill Michael.”
“He helped put me underground.”
Michael breathed through the pain.
“She’s right.”
Claire stared at him.
Michael continued.
“Don’t give him anything for me.”
Victor laughed.
“Very noble.”
He raised the gun toward Michael’s knee.
Claire shouted, “LILY!”
Victor paused.
Claire’s eyes filled with tears.
“The password is LILY.”
Victor typed it.
Wrong.
Daniel looked at Claire.
She knew that would fail.
Victor slowly turned.
Claire shrugged.
“I guess Eleanor was more creative than we thought.”
Victor hit Michael again.
Lily buried her face against Vanessa.
Daniel couldn’t watch this continue.
“Try ELEANORLILY.”
Victor typed it.
Wrong.
Michael looked at Daniel.
Something passed between them.
They had already tested those passwords.
Victor didn’t know the real one.
RIDGEWAY had opened the drive before.
Why wasn’t it working now?
Then Daniel understood.
Claire had switched drives.
At some point between the mansion and cabin, she must have replaced the original with the copy.
But Daniel had copied the files without checking whether the password setup transferred correctly.
Victor didn’t have the original.
Daniel forced himself not to react.
Claire saw that he understood.
Victor slammed the laptop shut.
“Enough.”
He pointed at Vanessa.
“You.”
Vanessa froze.
“You know Charles better than any of them.”
Daniel stared at her.
Victor smiled.
“What would he use?”
Vanessa whispered, “I don’t know.”
Victor walked closer.
“You spent five years in his bed.”
Lily looked up.
Daniel saw the confusion on his daughter’s face.
“Vanessa.”
His tone was warning.
Victor didn’t care.
“He told you everything.”
“No.”
“You helped create the trusts.”
“I handled paperwork. I didn’t control them.”
Victor grabbed her face.
Daniel exploded.
“Get your hands off my wife.”
The words came instinctively.
Even after everything.
Vanessa stared at him.
Victor smiled.
“Still your wife?”
Daniel said nothing.
Victor released her.
“You know what’s funny, Daniel?”
“I doubt it.”
“Charles never believed you’d marry her.”
Daniel’s eyes shifted.
Victor continued.
“He thought you were too cautious.”
“Then why put her in my life?”
Vanessa closed her eyes.
Daniel looked at her.
“What did he ask you to do?”
Vanessa whispered, “Protect you.”
Daniel laughed bitterly.
“By imprisoning Claire?”
“Victor did that.”
“You fed her.”
“Because if I didn’t, Victor said he’d kill her.”
“You hid her in my house.”
“She was already there when I married you!”
“Then why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because Victor had the video!”
“Everyone keeps saying that!”
Vanessa shouted back.
“Because the video didn’t only show Michael!”
Daniel stopped.
“What else?”
Vanessa looked terrified.
Victor became still.
“Vanessa.”
She ignored him.
“The full recording showed your father putting Eleanor into her car.”
Daniel’s face tightened.
“And?”
“It showed him walking back to the cabin afterward.”
“After the crash?”
“Yes.”
“With blood on his shirt.”
Daniel stared at her.
Vanessa continued.
“He told Victor to clean the vehicle he used to follow her.”
“So my father killed her.”
“Yes.”
The word broke something.
Daniel looked at the fireplace.
A family photograph used to hang above it.
Mother.
Father.
Daniel.
Michael.
Perfect.
All fake.
Vanessa whispered, “But there was more.”
Victor raised his gun.
“Enough.”
Daniel turned.
“What more?”
Vanessa looked at Victor.
Fearlessly this time.
“The video showed who was in the passenger seat when Charles drove after Eleanor.”
Daniel’s pulse jumped.
“Who?”
Victor cocked the gun.
Vanessa pointed at him.
“Victor.”
Claire frowned.
“That makes sense.”
Vanessa shook her head.
“No.”
She looked at Daniel.
“Victor wasn’t alone.”
Michael slowly lifted his head from the floor.
Vanessa swallowed.
“There was a woman with them.”
Daniel’s voice dropped.
“Who?”
May you like
Vanessa looked directly at Claire.
“Claire’s mother.”
